Haulers Support Materials

If you are a hauler, disposal facility operator, or city representative in Alameda County, take advantage of these free resources to help you communicate with customers about the Mandatory Recycling Ordinance.

You can also visit the Business or Multi-family Support Materials pages for additional resources to pass along to customers trying to comply with the Ordinance.

These FAQs will help you respond to your customer’s questions about the Mandatory Recycling Ordinance. Customers can also be directed to this website (www.RecyclingRulesAC.org) or the Ordinance Help Line at (510) 891-6575. Updated in November 2017 .

Overview of Recycling Rules

These 1-page handouts summarize the compliance requirements and highlight resources available to help covered accounts comply with the Ordinance. For more details about the compliance requirements in the various Alameda County jurisdictions, go to Rules by City.

Spanish, Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese translations of these overview flyers are posted on the Business and Multi-family Support Materials page.

Articles about the ordinance for use in newsletters

These articles provide general information about the ordinance that you can copy into your company’s newsletter. The first two articles reflect Phase 2 requirements that took effect on July 1, 2014, in certain jurisdictions. If you’d like assistance in customizing an article to your jurisdiction’s customers, contact BizAssistance@RecyclingRulesAC.org.

Customizable bill inserts for multi-family and business accounts

The two bill inserts have an area on the front face for service provider specific information. NOTE: These bill insert templates do not reflect Phase 2 requirements that took effect on July 1, 2014, in certain jurisdictions. Updated bill insert templates are below.

Customizable bill inserts for Phase 2

These bill inserts can be used to communicate new Phase 2 organics collection requirements (full opt-in version) or new accounts that have recycling requirements (partial opt-in version). There are also versions of each that have an area on the back for specific city or service provider information. The artwork source files in InDesign are also available upon request.

This insert is included with all Official Notification and Notice of Violation enforcement letters. The focus of the insert is to inform property owners and managers of the resources available to help them comply with the Ordinance.

The Mandatory Recycling Ordinance is enforced through a combination of routine inspections and administrative review of service data provided by waste haulers. On a rotating basis, inspectors are dispatched to business properties to inspect the garbage, recyclables and, if required, the organics collection containers. If upon inspection or review of records, one or more Ordinance violations are found, a letter will be mailed to the service address of the property owner or manager. If the billing address is different, a second letter will also be sent to the billing address. A series of enforcement letters are sent prior to a fine being issued. The sample letters below are provided as reference. To identify a specific letter version being referenced by a customer, ask for the letter title and version noted in the footer of the enforcement letter.

Official Notification Letters

Official Notification is the first step in a progressive enforcement process to inform the regulated community of obligations under the Ordinance. The Official Notification letter is the first in a series of enforcement letters and may be given upon inspection or upon review of hauler records, and may or may not be the result of a violation. NOTE: Notifications are currently being sent to all businesses to officially inform them of the Ordinance requirements.

The non-inspection based letters are also known as “Administrative Notifications” and are not the result of an observed violation. There is an Administrative Official Notification letter version for businesses and one for multi-family properties.

If a property is inspected, a violation is found, and the site has not yet received an Administrative Official Notification letter, the above “Official Notification (inspection-based)” letter is used to notify the business or multi-family property of the Ordinance requirements and their violation(s).

Notice of Violation Letter

Once a property has received an Official Notification letter (Administrative Notification or inspection-based Official Notification), they are considered to be officially notified of the Ordinance requirements. If a violation is found upon inspection or upon review of hauler records, the Notice of Violation letter is used. This letter informs the business or multi-family property of the violation observed, what must be done to correct the violation(s), and warns the property of the possible consequences if the violation(s) are not corrected, before being subject to an Administrative Citation and fine. This letter includes two tables: one to indicate which violation(s) were witnessed (first page), and one to indicate the specific actions required to correct the violation(s) and the potential fine(s) if not corrected (second page) within the specified time period.

Administrative Citation Letter

Citations and fines will be issued if there is continued non-compliance after Official Notification and Notice of Violation letters are sent. In the event a citation is issued, the letter above is used. The table on page 1 details the observed violations and fines. The table on page 2 explains the specific actions required to correct the violation(s) to avoid a subsequent citation and fine. The total fine amount must be paid within 30 days according to payment instructions detailed in the letter, or the citation may be appealed.

Additional inspections could be conducted as soon as 30 days after the inspection that resulted in the citation. Subsequent fines for non-compliance are doubled, then tripled within each year.

A different letter is used when a citation and fine are issued for non-compliance with the Plant Debris Disposal Ban Ordinance.

Note for Phase 1 Direct Mail #1: Page 1 of the PDF shows the back of the mailer 11 x 17″ mailer which was folded to a final 8.5 x 11″ size. The following pages show the inside of the mailer which were customized for each jurisdiction.

Phase 2 Direct Mail #1

Mailed in May 2014 to accounts with new requirements or newly covered accounts as of July 1, 2014, with two versions depending on Phase 2 opt-in status. Full opt-in jurisdictions included Alameda, Albany, Berkeley, Emeryville, Livermore, Piedmont and unincorporated areas of Alameda County (not covered by the Castro Valley or Oro Loma Sanitary Districts). Partial opt-in jurisdictions included Castro Valley, Fremont and Oakland.

Phase 2 Direct Mail #2

Mailed in July 2014 to all covered accounts, including newly covered accounts as of July 1, 2014. It was also mailed to covered accounts in jurisdictions that had opted-out or postponed implementation of Phase 2. Different versions were done for each jurisdiction.

Phase 2 Direct Mail #1 for Jurisdictions with new accounts or requirements as of July 1, 2015

Mailed in May/June 2015 to newly covered below 4 cubic yard of weekly garbage accounts in Newark and San Leandro and all businesses and multi-family accounts with new organics requirements as of July 1, 2015, in the City of Hayward and Oro Loma Sanitary District’s L2 service area.

Phase 2 Direct Mail #2 for Jurisdictions with new accounts or requirements as of July 1, 2015

Mailed in July 2015 to newly covered below 4 cubic yard of weekly garbage accounts in Newark and San Leandro and all businesses and multi-family accounts with new organics requirements as of July 1, 2015, in the City of Hayward and Oro Loma Sanitary District’s L2 service area.

Phase 2 Direct Mail #3 for Jurisdictions with new accounts or requirements as of July 1, 2015

Mailed in mid-December 2015 to newly covered below 4 cubic yard of weekly garbage accounts in Newark and San Leandro and multi-family accounts with new organics requirements as of July 1, 2015, in the City of Hayward and Oro Loma Sanitary District’s L2 service area to remind them that enforcement begins on January 1, 2016. The Hayward and Oro Loma Sanitary District L2 service area commercial accounts with 4 or more cubic yards of weekly garbage service were mailed the business version in early January 2016.

Phase 2 Direct Mail for Castro Valley for new organics requirements

Direct Mail #1 was mailed in November 2015 to businesses and multi-family properties in the Castro Valley Sanitary District (CVSan) service area that will have new organics requirements effective January 1, 2016. Direct Mail #2 was mailed in January 2016. Direct Mail #3 was mailed in early June 2016 reminding accounts that enforcement actions will begin July 1, 2016.

Phase 2 Direct Mail #1 for new requirements as of July 1, 2016

Direct Mail #1 was mailed in May 2016 to businesses and multi-family properties in Oakland and San Leandro that will have new organics requirements and businesses with less than 4 cubic yards of weekly garbage service in Hayward that will have new recycling requirements effective July 1, 2016.

These mailers were sent to businesses and multi-family properties in Oakland and San Leandro that have new organics requirements and businesses with less than 4 cubic yards of weekly garbage service in Hayward that have new recycling requirements effective July 1, 2016.

Direct Mail #2 was mailed in July 2016.

Direct Mail #3 was mailed in late November 2016 to remind accounts that enforcement actions begin January 1, 2017, for the new requirements.

Direct Mail #1 was mailed in mid-November 2016 to businesses and multi-family properties in Pleasanton and Oro Loma Sanitary District’s L1 service area that will have new recycling and/or organics requirements effective January 1, 2017. Direct Mail #2 was mailed in early January 2017. Direct Mail #3 was mailed in early June 2017.

Direct Mail #1, #2 & #3 for Fremont new organics requirements as of July 1, 2017

Direct Mail #1 was mailed in late May 2017 to businesses and multi-family properties in Fremont that will have new organics requirements effective July 1, 2017. Direct Mail #2 was mailed in late July 2017. Direct Mail #3 was mailed in early December 2017.

Direct Mail #1, #2, & #3 for new requirements as of January 1, 2018

Direct Mail #1 to Union City businesses and multi-family properties will be mailed in early December 2017 that will have new recycling and organics requirements effective January 1, 2018. Direct Mail #1 to Newark businesses and multi-family properties was mailed in mid-December 2017 that have new organics requirements effective January 1, 2018. Direct Mail #2 was mailed in mid-January 2018 and Direct Mail #3 will be mailed in mid-May 2018.

In December 2018, a letter was mailed out to selected businesses that are covered by state laws AB 341 and AB 1826 and may be out of compliance with the recycling and organics collection service requirements. Per the jurisdiction’s request, these were sent out in the Cities of Alameda, Albany, Berkeley, Emeryville, Livermore, Pleasanton, San Leandro and Union City to commercial accounts that had not received a Mandatory Recycling Ordinance enforcement letter or technical assistance contact in calendar year 2018.